Tunnel connecting Belarus and Poland discovered by border guards

Polish border guard officers discovered a tunnel connecting the Belarusian side of the border with Poland on Friday. Warsaw's Minister of Interior and Administration Marcin Kierwiński provided information about the revealed tunnel in a post on social media platform X.

"Officers of the [Podlaskie Border Guard - ed.] discovered a tunnel under the barrier on the Polish-Belarusian border. The tunnel started and ended about 20 meters from the border on the side. Thanks to advanced electronic systems on the barrier, the Polish-Belarusian border is effectively protected!" wrote the head of the Ministry of Interior and Administration.

This is the second tunnel dug under the Polish-Belarusian border that has been discovered this year. The first one was located in the area of the Border Guard Station in Narewka.

Both tunnels were detected using "advanced electronic systems" recently installed in the area, according to local officials.

In July, a significant section of the Polish-Belarusian border was modernised, installing the most advanced and modern thermal cameras.

The Podlaskie Border Guard also reported that more than 60 attempts to illegally cross the Polish-Belarusian border were recorded on Thursday.

26,700 illegal border crossing attempts since January

Since January 2025, Border Guard officers have recorded over 26,700 attempts to illegally cross this border.

The Polish-Belarusian border has been at the centre of a migration and humanitarian crisis on the eastern flank of the European Union since 2021.

The government claims this is part of a broader "hybrid warfare" strategy aimed at destabilising the region.

Poland and its allies have accused the Belarusian government of provoking the crisis by bringing migrants from the Middle East and Africa to Belarus and transporting them to the Polish border.

For years, Poland has faced criticism from human rights organisations for its response to illegal border crossing attempts. These critics particularly highlighted the alleged use of the "pushback" method to send migrants back to Belarus without allowing them to apply for asylum.